Description: ***UPDATED MEARS GRADE*** Rare and important 1948 Jackie Robinson Brooklyn Dodgers road jersey. There are many great names in the history of baseball. Of those, there are scant few whose legacies have reached beyond the game itself. The name "Jackie Robinson", however, epitomizes the very essence of what it means to have "changed history". Robinson's path to immortality was filled with adversity, challenges, rewards, defeats, and ultimately success as he became the first African American player in the history of the Major Leagues. Most sports fans in America know his story. Many non-sports fans know his story. Countless more will learn about his story as the years pass due to the recognition that he is finally, and justly, receiving within the baseball community and the country as a whole. Robinson entered the game some 60 years ago, which does not seem so long in the past, unless one considers the dramatic social and political changes that have occurred in the years since. In that spirit, we are proud to offer what we believe is one of the finest Jackie Robinson game worn jerseys to have been offered at public auction.
Grey flannel road jersey retains its original "Dodgers" blue lettering across the front with classic number "42" affixed to the reverse. Collar area displays black MacGregor-Goldsmith labeling (dating period 1946-52) with indicative size 42. Cream colored strip tag is found below with "Robinson 42" chain stitched in red. Interior tail front has a small strip tag with "1-48" chain stitched in red in reference to set and year designation. The jersey remains in outstanding original condition exhibiting desirable evident use including light age toning, a few areas of light soiling, and very slight separation of the strip tag from the shirt surface, which is commonly seen from wash/use wear in the period. Display qualities are superb, with particular note to the highly desirable "Robinson" strip tag in the collar. The 1947 Dodgers jerseys did not have such name tags, making the offered 1948 version the first such occurrence for a Robinson jersey.
While Jackie Robinson's level of play was certainly deserving of the Major Leagues, it was his ability to cope gracefully with the injustices of his plight that inspired Branch Rickey to select him, in particular, to break the color barrier. Robinson persevered through the twists and turns of his ascension into to the Major Leagues despite racial epithets from fans, insulting remarks from teammates and opposing players, and excessively hard play from opponents, which in some cases caused him physical harm. None of these factors, or any others, caused Jackie to deviate from the exemplary manner in which he carried himself both on and off the baseball field. His dear friend and teammate, Pee Wee Reese, once remarked, "You can hate a man for many reasons. Color is not one of them." Reese was one of Jackie's biggest supporters, once placing his arm around Robinson in Cincinnati while fans shouted racial slurs. It is, therefore, both marvelous and appropriate to offer a pair of 1948 Robinson and Reese Brooklyn Dodgers jerseys in the very same auction.
The Robinson jersey originated two decades ago from a former coach with one of the Dodgers' farm teams. At the end of every season, the Dodgers sent the jerseys, pants and hats down to the minor leagues. The coaches would each wear one of the uniforms when they met the incoming players. The coach who kept this particular jersey had also retained many other uniforms, including a 1953 Hermanski and a 1944 Paul Waner. Over the years, he either sold or gave away most of the uniforms, including the offered Robinson jersey. Together with the Pee Wee Reese, the Robinson jersey was recently on display at the Museum of the City of New York in an exhibition called Glory Days: New York Baseball 1947 - 57.
It is our firm opinion that the Robinson shirt is one of the most significant pieces of baseball memorabilia to have entered the collecting marketplace. In addition to sheer rarity as a Hall of Fame game jersey, the shirt represents an iconic American figure in the best possible fashion. Robinson's #42 will never again be worn by a Major League player, and let there be no doubt that the significance of the offered jersey is destined to increase as time passes. Includes LOA from Hunt Auctions, LOA from MEARS Authentication (***Grade A10***), and a photographic copy of a 1948 image taken of Robinson wearing a jersey that appears to be nearly identical to the offered jersey, if not the actual jersey itself: EX-EX/MT